The Rarest Bear Kodiak – Production Bow

[johnnyrazorhead]

I'll tell you where you can put the compass Chuck!!! LOL

[TRAP]

  yikes

[alaskabowhunter]

 just kidding John...

[tonto]

on the compass kodiak are you saying later ones are built on a different form? I have a 68inch kodiak II.
Dean

[d. ward]

Yes its true I did have the rare bird 1967 Kodiak.I got the bow from a well known Bear Archery bowyer who lived here in Washington.
Here's what he told me..there were about 48 of those built and handed out to salesmen as samples.
As Grant mentioned the riser was tigerwood the same wood used on the short lived 1967 or 1967 1/2 KH that has the black riser and tip overlays sometimes known to collecters as the type 1 1967 and they were recalled do to cracking in the risers which was really caused by step-thru stringing..The 1967 Kodiak has brown and white tip and riser overlays with black micarta caps looking just like a 1966 Kodiak in color but reverse riser overlays with black caps and I would say the bow was built more of the form or profile to a 1967 1/2 Super Kodiak rather then a 1966 Kodiak.
I will do my very best to get Timmy to come over and try and get my old pc working as thats where to pics are in that dead pc.I would not list the owners name without his OK but will ask if he maybe could email me some pics.
Here's how it went down that day.I listed the bow for 9.99 starting bid no reserve however I did put a BIN for 1,595.00 on the bow.It got bid on about 5-7 times and was about 200 and some change...bammm within 90 minutes of listing she was gone....gee's I'am a bo-ho.bd

[Grant Young]

Thanks Don- I was beginning to wonder if I'd dreamed it, lol. Sure hope you can get some pics; what a beaut!               Grant

[d. ward]

Yes I was sad to see it go.However I did manage to pay for my hunt that spring with the sale of it Thanks Fred....bd

[Wade Phillips]

BowDoc – I can not thank you enough for taking the time to document your knowledge, ownership, and description of this very rare bow indeed.

The elusive 1967 Kodiak - a very interesting subject for this thread about rare Kodiaks. In fact, the 1967 Kodiak is so rare that most collectors have never seen one, myself included. Over the years there have been many rumors of its existence and your auction ending 90 minuets after starting with a $1,595 BIN, is a testament to its rarity. While I do know of several Kodiaks that have sold within the past 10 years for more than $1,595, there sure are not many going for more than that lately.

A little update for collectors who may not be aware of the mythical 1967 Kodiak…

The 1967 Bear Kodiak was featured on the full page 12 of the 1967 Bear Catalog. The color image of the bow is a normal 1966 Kodiak with serial number 6L301, 60”, 41#. This entire page in the 1967 Catalog appears to be identical in every way to the full page Kodiak description and images in the 1966 Bear Archery Catalog.

For 1965 and 1966 Kodiaks, collectors generally accepted that the first letter in the serial number designates the year the bow was manufactured.

Because the 1967 Catalog showed a 1966 Kodiak with the 6L301 serial number, many collectors assumed that the 1966 image was simply re-used for the 1967 Catalog, and that this same bow was made in 1967 using a serial number beginning with a “7”.

If a Kodiak surfaces that is identical to a 1966 Kodiak with a serial number beginning with a “7”, arguably, it could lay claim to being an advertised, documented 1967.

Frankly, BowDoc’s 1967 tigerwood riser with black caps, would undoubtedly be a much nicer looking bow.

BowDoc - Looking forward to seeing a photograph of it…

If 48 were built as BowDoc was told, there has to be more out there.

[Wade Phillips]

Dean – Not sure exactly what you meant in your post when you stated…

“on the compass Kodiak are you saying later ones are built on a different form? I have a 68inch Kodiak II.

Yes, the 68” Kodiak II is a rare Kodiak for sure and certainty should be included in any discussion of Rare Kodiaks, even though it is perhaps not quite as rare as its little 56” bother.

I have four 68” Kodiak IIs. Two maple & two walnut risers. There is a noticeable difference between the maple and walnut bows as far as the forms they were built on. Also within each of the bows, there is a measurable difference of at least 1/8” in the riser width, edge of glass from back to belly.

I’ll try to get a photograph of them for you in the next few days.

It is an accepted fact that “All collectors are crazy.” It is also accepted that some are more crazy than others. Classifying a bow as different by one collector, can be meaningless to another collector.

I use the term “noticeable difference” when a difference is obvious to me, and should be obvious to anyone.

I use the term “measurable difference” when I can see a difference that may not be obvious to everyone, and I want be specific about that difference so I actually measure the difference.

Knowing there may be many slight differences between forms… we as collectors should establish what criteria should be used to classify a bow as being different?

Any collectors have any ideas ?

[Wade Phillips]

Chuck - Yes, your "Rosewood SW No coin '59 Kodiak 64" is a rare bow (regardless of what location you and John decide to install a compass, just don't put the compass in the normal coin location). LOL

Not really certain how important this business of "no coin hole" / "no coin" in Kodiaks really is to other collectors.

While “No Coin” is unusual, its mystic may be a little over rated. As you can see from this photograph, 1959, 1960, 1961 and 1962 Kodiaks were all made with “No Coins”. While I have never seen a 1963, 1964, 1965 or 1966 with “No Coin”, I would not be surprised to see a photograph of one posted on this thread…

 

[tonto]

Mine looks like the one posted on the thread just 68 inches blonde glass and all(looks almost pink). I didnt know if the handles were different. And if they were was it just the maple vs walnut or shape and size also?

Dean

[Horney Toad]

 


Here are the pics of the "67" kodiak on auction one time.

[Novaln1975]

WOW. It really exists.

Now, we MUST see the Red Super Kodiak.

-Simon

[TRAP]

 Toad

I think the 68 and 69 are prettier though.  

Trap

[hormoan]

Crap they put the window on the wrong side again  

[Wade Phillips]

Originally posted by Wade Phillips:
Horney Toad – Jeff – Thank you so much for posting the photographs of the "67" in the earlier auction. A picture is still worth a thousand words.

Trap – Your statement regarding the “67”… “I think the 68 and 69 are prettier though.” – Your statement would be difficult for anyone to refute. But each collector has their own eye for beauty. – Sorry for the poor image shown below of a 68 SK…

   

After the “67” descriptions were posted, my hallucinations have been of a  much different looking bow with a more sleek and sculptured riser more closely resembling a 1967 Super Kodiak, as shown above.

I envisioned the color combination of the riser materials to more closely resemble the 1967 Bear Catalog bow shown below… except with the wood and black reversed and the size of the cap area being closer to the SK shown above, and of course all brown glass limbs, as well as a much smaller and different shape…

   

[d. ward]

Toad you da man this week brother.I spent half the night looking for that pis..I owe you a soda at Denton Hill this summer.thanks dude....bd

[Grant Young]

Thank God a picture showed up- I was beginning to question my own sanity- AGAIN. I agree that the riser is a bit "blocky" compared to the 68-69 and later models but I've seen a pretty wide variation in bulk from bow to bow in just about every model over the years. I currently have a pretty nice '69 that Dr. Ward took some of the bulge out of for me cause  I like them on the thin side in the palm swell. I like the all black 67 1/2 as well, but this bow shown caught me by surprise and really made an impression on me from a cosmetic point of view. My first thoughts when I saw it was its resemblance to the Deluxe Wade posted pics of ( I think thats a DeLuxe but I can't be sure- maybe a Supreme- help me out here Wade) and I always kinda liked that color scheme.                Grant

[Grant Young]

Oh - I forgot to say "Thanks" to Toad for digging the pic up. So--Thanks...Grant

[d. ward]

Are Kodiak Specials legal to show in this thread or does it have to be only Kodiaks ???
If I may make a comment about the no coin hole bows ? Well thank you how'd you know I was gonna made it anyhow..
Please remember if someone orderd like I believe it was at least 50 bows at one time from companies like Wing Howatt Hoyt and yes even Bear Archery.They would do a little custom work kind of like on Jack Howards Damon Howatt bows Wing archery Browning bows.Those manufactures made bows for several different sporting good companies.There may have been a sporting goods store that orderd 50 Bear bows without coins.Viking Archery I believe was in Texas and used to be a Bear dealer they would order bows with no silk screens.Then they would add thier own Viking Archery decals to the Bear bows...bd